Acts 21::Stop or Go...Stop or Go

Acts 21 in the Message and TNIV translations

Each one of us reads the bible with our own presuppositions.  We can't help it.  If you've been around church for very long, you will have to sift through your own ideas to get to the purity of the text.  Today is one of the difficult days for me.  Everything in me wants to believe that Paul was so committed to the calling God had placed on his life that he was willing to go through beatings and imprisonment to see it accomplished, and I think he was.  But there is another part of me that struggles with the text I read today.  In verse 4, Luke tells us "Their (the Tyrenian believers) message to Paul, from insight given by the Spirit, was "Don't go to Jerusalem."  In verse 10-12, we are told that a prophet from Judea named Abagus told Paul, "This is what the Holy Spirit says:  The Jews in Jerusalem are going to tie up the man who owns this belt just like this and hand him over to Godless believers."  When those traveling with Paul heard this, they begged him to stay, but he wouldn't budge.

Now, some people will say that the Paul probably didn't trust the Tyrenian believers to really hear from the Holy Spirit and that Abagus wasn't telling him not to go, but simply warning him of the dangers ahead.  Others would say that the Tyrenian believers were not saying to abort the mission, but that through the Spirit of unity with Paul, they too were in essence warning Paul about the dangers.  Still others would say that Paul disobeyed the Spirit of God in this instance.

What do you think?  What have you been told?  Is there a difference?

As of right now, here are my thoughts, but as one of my seminary professors used to tell us, "my feet aren't in cement on this one."  I think Paul let his vision get ahead of His voice.  Had Paul received a calling from God?  Absolutely.  Had Paul been faithful up to this point?  Probably so (not completely sure with the whole John Mark thing).  I believe that Paul's personality and the success he had been experiencing may have clouded his ears.  The text says, "Don't go to Jerusalem" and that those words were given to them by the Spirit.  It doesn't say, "It's going to be hard in Jerusalem."  I'm taking the words as they are.  In the next encounter, I can buy that Abagus wasn't saying the Spirit told him Paul shouldn't go to Jerusalem, but he does give him a pretty stern warning.  Was the word about "the man who owns this belt" an indication that the Holy Spirt has a changed mind now?  Or does he know Paul is set and now he sends out a more graphic warning.  Not sure.

There is a third instance that pushes me toward my conclusion of disobedience.  When Paul gets to Jerusalem, he isn't completely honest.  He cuts corners here...at the urging of the church leaders, too!  He sneaks into the group of men who have taken the vow of ritual purification.  When he pays their expenses, then everyone concludes that he is one of them and is just as scrupulous in his reverence for the laws of Moses.  But he is not!  Maybe it's just me but it seems like they are manipulating the circumstances to deceive the zealots so they won't attack Paul.

So here is the deal.  Paul was not Jesus - he sinned before meeting Christ and he sinned after meeting Christ.  This chapter is important to me because it warns me of a great danger I have to avoid as a church leader.  I cannot be so committed to my vision that I miss the Master's voice.  When I am, I miss the Spirit, I ignore my friends and it leads me to do things I shouldn't do.  This is good for me because I also see that God is big enough to still work His plan, in spite of my disobedience.  I may miss the Spirit's prompting, I may disregard my friends and I may do stupid things, but God still has a plan that is bigger than my mistakes.  He will continue to build Himself in me and His plan in us.  I have to be sensitive to this and keep my eyes and ears open as I seek Father.  I cannot assume that His directions won't change over the course of my life.  If they do, I want to hold my vision so lightly that I can accept His change without too much questioning.

I'd really like to hear your thoughts on this one.  You are always free to disagree with my conclusions.  My feet aren't in cement, remember?